Technically, poker is a game of strategy and skill, although it contains an element of short-term luck. In short, in the long run, in a tournament, poker is a game where strategy is the necessary tool to overcome luck.
On the other hand, some believe that poker is not a game, but a mental sport, since players can win without having the best hand, using techniques such as bluffing and controlling their position at the table.
On the other hand, some believe that poker is not a game, but a mental sport, since players can win without having the best hand, using techniques such as bluffing and controlling their position at the table.
It depends on your point of view. If you're a player who doesn't know the game, its nature, and strategies very well, it will certainly seem like a game of chance. But if you know the game, you'll see that 75% of your good results depend on your choices, that is, your game strategy.
This comes up all the time, and the real answer is both.
Poker is gambling in the short term. You’re risking money on outcomes you can’t fully control. Cards run hot or cold, and anyone can win a session and in the long term, skill shows up over volume. Better players consistently win because they make higher EV decisions, manage risk, and adapt to opponents.
Poker is gambling in the short term. You’re risking money on outcomes you can’t fully control. Cards run hot or cold, and anyone can win a session and in the long term, skill shows up over volume. Better players consistently win because they make higher EV decisions, manage risk, and adapt to opponents.
Poker is a game of strategy for robots, AI bots and the less than 1% who can truly read a table and the players sitting around it. For the rest of us, if we're being honest which were not most of the time, it's gambling.
freerolls though are not gambling since you're not risking your own money. Just don't make the jump thinking that your performance in freerolls is an indicator of your future as a professional poker player. It's absolutely not.
freerolls though are not gambling since you're not risking your own money. Just don't make the jump thinking that your performance in freerolls is an indicator of your future as a professional poker player. It's absolutely not.
There are players for whom poker is a game of chance, and I think they are the majority. But there are players for whom poker is a strategy, a long-term strategy, and such players are in the minority. It is better for you to decide for yourself what poker means to you. For me personally, poker is just a game of chance that helps me pay my bills.Raz1969 said:
